Second post (the first one here) of the chronological journey through the work of the remarkable Chinese photographer Maleonn. Creativity and imagination without limits for a collection of exquisite visual narratives with an elaborate staging.

Maleonn, whose real name is Ma Liang, is a Chinese graphic designer, director and photographer born in 1972. More images and information in previous post.

The artworks of Maleonn are very complex in nature – the images require carefully laid out stages and elaborate costumes and props. The subjects in his images are usually actors who appear in fantastical settings in a variety of bizarre contexts. Maleonn’s work has been associated with steampunk, since it shares the genre’s general old-fashioned feel, and the elements of science fiction and horror are present in both. The images are multi-layered, each telling a tale of its own.

«I only use Photoshop to adjust the color, even at work in black and white. Rarely use other methods, but do not feel it inappropriate. I think Photoshop is great as it quickly can help us achieve the perfect image without the boring work in the dark room of traditional photography. I feel like when I shot, there is a moment of "accident" where is a convicted aesthetic in the image that is irreplaceable and that makes life in the photography. The work that has not been taken right from the start, will not become a perfect work just because you use Photoshop.»

«Readings, movies and Internet... every image has the words I want to express. I feel my work is my experience, all the subtle emotion I felt through those years. Use my work as a form of language to communicate with the world outside myself. In a word, to create is to talk to the world and connect with the outside out of the body ...»

"上海孤儿 / Huérfanos de Shanghai / Shanghai Orphans", 2011

«I'm a Virgo person, and is supposed to be a perfectionist, but I'm actually a frustrated person, because I hope to do everything so carefully that I can't control that. Sometimes I feel bad about it and I ran out, but I finally realized that there is no perfection in this world. So this gives me a degree of limitation. At the last minute, I use the rest of my energy to make a conceptual decision, and then think no more ...»

For his Studio Mobile Project, Maleonn has travelled around 25 Chinese provinces, photographing 200,000 people in a mobile photo studio and posting the images on his Weibo account.

The subjects dressed either in clothes from Maleonn’s van or brought their own outfits. Subjects ranged from tank drivers and police officers to Tang dynasty scholars.

Maleonn launched the project after losing his studio in Shanghai’s Weihai Road 696 arts community, following a government eviction of artists, and getting divorced. Having completed the huge project in China, Maleonn suggested he might next be taking the roadshow to the UK.

"移动照相馆 / Estudio móvil / Studio Mobile", 2012

"移动照相馆 / Estudio móvil / Studio Mobile", 2012

Maleonn about his Studio Mobile project

«It took us seven months to get prepared. A great deal was done. We designed the detailed plan, including painting the sets and background boards, getting ready for the costumes, producing the props, purchasing and reforming the truck, arranging the locations all over the country and communicating with those who make reservations for the project. Of course I still had to earn money, for the trip will cost us much. Besides, since I won’t be earning any money for nearly one year, I had to manage the rent and some other cost. I also had to look for my companions and persuade them to go through all the difficulties with me. Meanwhile I had to contact some sponsors for my private savings were not adequate anyway, so I needed the help from some companies and friends. But most talks broke down because I don’t want to make this project too commercial, which means the companies could expect little profit. So I have to express my special gratitude to Hangzhou-based clothes brand “Croquis”, agent of printing paper brand “Canson” and the movie company of my friend “Union Square Media Group”who eventually decide to support us.»

"移动照相馆 / Estudio móvil / Studio Mobile", 2012

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«The outside world is more and more complex and chaotic. In this ridiculous era characterised by plastic values, many things that are profound and noble are being questioned. I try to reconfigure my way this period from my point of view. I dance the sound of these exaggeratedly banal and kind of artificial times. But this is our inevitable fate. Everything’s got a plastic texture. During the construction process of my images, I base on the freedom of creation and the reflexions about the human being as an individual. My work is my own inner world. The scenes I show have arisen from my fantasies; sometimes I draw them before photographing them. Each detail is clear in my mind. What I do is turning my inner world into reality. That’s all.»

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